


Echoes of Light

by quantitativeeasing



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: (maybe a little bit of world destroying), Dark Magic, Established Relationship, I make up some history, Original Character(s), POV Alternating, Soulfang serpent shenanigans, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-29
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:45:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22961119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quantitativeeasing/pseuds/quantitativeeasing
Summary: The battle of the Storm Spire is won. Good has triumphed over evil, and elves and humans look forward towards a new era of peace and reconciliation. Callum and Rayla discover a hopeful secret regarding Rayla’s parents and set off to Katolis in search of answers, but what they find may stretch their budding relationship to its limit. King once more, Ezran takes on his most challenging task yet: reuniting a continent divided by centuries of mistrust and war.Aaravos sets off into the world a free man, preparing to embark on the next phase in a mission of vengeance, and deep underground, Claudia and Viren make a discovery that will turn their understanding of reality on its head.Meanwhile, an ancient threat awakens once again in Xadia, ready to accomplish its terrible purpose once and for all.
Relationships: Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 22





	Echoes of Light

It was over. Finally, mercifully, over. The late afternoon sun set the sky alight in a blaze of colour, luminous clouds aglow with purple and amber and crimson. Far in the east a distant mountain range lay shrouded in lavender haze, a backdrop against a wide silver lake and fields of wild lupins. The afternoon heat still lingered in the air, and Callum felt it stir against his skin in a lazy summer breeze. Any other day it would be beautiful.  
In the aftermath of the battle humans and elves had stood side by side, united in their victory. Now, as the euphoria of that victory wore thin they stood united in their grief, too.

Callum stood on a ledge on the lower slopes of the Storm Spire, watching as Janai and the other Sunfire elves worked to recover their dead from the battlefield. Their losses had been heavy, another blow to a people already suffering in a conflict for which they had no blame. Janai had told him how Viren singlehandedly brought their city to its knees, poisoning their light with dark magic and stealing the Sun Staff, only to then use it to corrupt his own army. Those who had chosen to fight had done so in the full knowledge that their own power would be turned against them, and they had come anyway.  
 _What would have happened if they had refused to come to our aid? Or if Ezran had failed to rally the dragons, or if the Knights of the Broken Chain had decided to stay in Katolis or if I hadn’t figured out the mage wing spell and Rayla had- NO. Stop worrying. We won. Zym survived, Rayla is fine, Viren is dead._

Ibis reeled overhead on dark wings, still searching the ground for any sign of Claudia or Viren’s animal familiar. Both had disappeared after Viren had died, and despite Ibis’s best efforts both had managed to remain undiscovered for the best part of the afternoon.  
_Maybe they won’t ever find her. I know she deserves to be punished but she must’ve been acting on Viren’s orders, and Ezran was so soft on her last time that now people will be saying that he was wrong to pardon her in the first place._

Of all the soldiers in Viren’s army that morning, Claudia had been the most deadly by far. Soren had said she’d had the chance to leave with him after Viren had transformed his army, when they’d been able to see once and for all what his true intentions in Xadia really were.  
_So why did she stay? Viren must’ve done something too her, threatened her or put her under some spell to force her to fight for him. I just hope Ezran will listen to her side of the story when they capture her.  
_ _If they capture her._

Claudia had always been smart in her own way, and she was a talented mage, maybe she could go into hiding and start a new life somewhere. He could always hope. 

Viren’s body still lay where it had fallen earlier that day around the far side of the Storm Spire. Somebody’d had the good grace to cover it with a spare cloak, but otherwise it had been left well enough alone. After he had died Viren’s human –no, _formerly_ human soldiers had lost what little directive they’d originally possessed, and left to their own impulses were reduced to nothing more than animalistic instinct, attacking anything and everything that moved with mindless savagery. Most had scattered into the surrounding plains but a few of them still milled about on the battlefield, and Janai had issued a temporary command to kill them on sight. Callum watched as Rayla ran up behind a pair of the creatures that were viciously ripping and tearing at each other with clawed hands. A flash of her blades and the two crumbled into piles of ember and ash. _Did they use to be anyone I knew?_ Thankfully he would never know. 

The golden hour deepened and the Sunfire elves finished recovering their dead, laying their bodies out in a great circle beneath the blazing sky. A crowd of both humans and elves had formed around the outside, and Callum climbed down to join them. He found Rayla easily enough, and the two of them took a place at the front of the gathering. 

Ezran and Zym stood with Queen Aanya and Janai on a small outcrop of rock that rose up before the crowd. Callum remembered the day only a few weeks past when his brother had finally found out about Harrow’s death. Ezran had looked like he had aged five years that day, and he wore that same expression now. The crown of Katolis had been mangled beyond repair by Viren’s fall, but even without it Ezran looked every part a king. 

His brother stepped forward.

“People of Xadia. People of the West. Today, we won. Not only did we protect Xadia from those who wanted to harm it, but we have shown that it is possible for elves and humans to work together for the good of all people. But our victory comes at a high price.” Ezran turned to look down at the ring of fallen Sunfire elves. “Yesterday, these men and women left their families to fight for something they truely believed in. Tomorrow they won’t return home. If they didn’t come to help us, Zym would have died and Xadia would still be at war. As king of Katolis, I thank them for their sacrifice.”

Callum saw Ezran glance in his direction as he finished his address, and Callum gave him a small nod of encouragement.  
_Well done, Ezran. That took courage._

Ezran stepped back and bowed to Janai, who moved forward to take his place to speak to the crowd.

“It is as the young king says. Without the cooperation of both our races, I am certain that Xadia would have suffered yet another unforgivable loss today. My people chose to fight to avenge the wrongs done to our kingdom, and to protect Xadia from the monster that did this to us. My only hope is that this tragedy will open the eyes of the humans to see the true nature of dark magic, so that you may finally reject it for what it is: evil, corruption, and death! My brothers and sisters died today for that truth. I trust that they did not die in vain.” 

Janai stepped down from the outcrop and strode towards the circle, and as she did her skin ignited with seams of burning fire. When she spoke again it was with an intensity that shook Callum to the core.

“Just as the sun must go down in the evening, so too our lives must come to an end. But just as the sun rises anew each morning, we too shall rise again to new life!  We do not fear the darkness, for even the darkest night cowers in the light of a new dawn!”

Janai raised her hand, drew a rune in the air and cried, “ _Ardeo_!“

With a flash the symbol ignited with brilliant white light. It burned in the air for a moment and then collapsed, cascading molten flames down onto the ring of bodies. Within seconds the circle was enveloped in a towering inferno of white fire, and Callum was forced to step back as a wall of heat slammed into his face.

_Did they burn Dad, too?_

Rayla stood beside him, the fire reflecting in her eyes. She reached for his hand without looking away and spoke quietly.

“The Sunfire elves believe in reincarnation. Those who lived honourable lives, and die defending what is good, will reborn to live again. It’s hopeful, in a way.”

Janai turned away from the pyre and started to walk back up towards the Storm Spire. She did not look back.

As the fire burned down, the sun slipped below the western hills and the sky finally sank into a deep, twilit blue. Callum and Rayla stood together and watched as golden embers spiralled up into the sky, mingling with the stars. 

***

Later that evening, Callum made his way back up to the top of the Storm Spire. Up here the air was brisk and fresh, and a thousand constellations sparkled above him in the cloudless sky. Not two days ago the mere thought of being up this high had made him feel slightly ill, but now the empty sky almost beckoned to him, temping him out into the open air to glide weightless on outstretched wings until nothing mattered except the wind in his face and the spark of a storm on the breeze.  
He sat for a while on the edge, alone with his thoughts and his sketchbook until he was interrupted by soft footsteps approached from behind. He looked up and his breath caught in his throat; Rayla stood behind him, beautiful and radiant in the pale light of the half-moon.

“Soren said I’d find you up here.” said Rayla, as she took a seat next to him. “Looks like he was right about something for once.”

“Are you sure you’re alright being up here, after, you know, today’s…?” Callum trailed off.

“Of course I am, silly!” said Rayla. “I’m with the only human in the whole world who knows how to conjure mage wings. And besides, my balance is excellent. I’ll only fall if I want to.”

She traced the runes on Callum’s left arm with a light fingertip. The sensation sent tingles of static leaping across his skin.

“How does it feel?” Rayla asked. “To fly?”

Callum thought about that for a moment.

“Itchy.”

Rayla chuckled. “Well I never hear the Skywing mages complaining. Maybe it’s your thin human skin and extra fingers gettin' in the way of the spell.” 

They sat together on the edge of the Storm Spire, the whole world laid out before them etched in silver starlight.

“It’s beautiful, isn't it.” said Rayla after a while. “It’s always been cloudy when I’ve come up here before. I bet my parents loved this place. I just wish they could be up here to share it with us tonight, as well.”

“My dad would’ve loved it too.” said Callum. “He was always gazing out his window at the top of the castle. I can’t imagine what he’d say if he found out i could grow wings…”

Callum took a deep breath. 

“Rayla there’s… there’s something else I think you should know about your parents. When I did the memory spell, I saw your parents defending the egg from Viren when he came to destroy it. They stayed and fought and when they were defeated they convinced him to keep the egg instead of destroying it.   
"Its just… There was something else I didn’t tell you before. Viren didn’t kill your parents.”

“What do you mean?” said Rayla. “Of course he did. Callum if they had survived I would’ve known. Remember what I showed you back in my village? When a Moonshadow elf goes out on assignment they place a lily on the water, and as long as it stays afloat we know they are still alive. I saw my parents die, Callum. They’re gone.”

“No… What I saw, I’m not sure what it was but I don’t think he killed them. He used dark magic, one moment they were standing there, trapped, and then it was like they were somehow pulled into that staff thing he carries everywhere.”

“So they’re in the staff?” Rayla sounded incredulous.

“That’s what it looked like, but I'm not entirely sure what i saw; I’ve never heard of any magic like it. I think I’ll ask Soren about it, maybe Viren mentioned it to him or he saw something when he was back in Katolis.”

“Well he’s downstairs now, why don’t we talk to him and see if he knows anything. Callum I know that you want this to be true but please don’t get your hopes up. We’ve all seen what Viren was capable of, but i don’t understand why he would go to the trouble of performing some curse to imprison my parents when he could’ve just killed them instead.”

Callum sighed. “I don’t know either. But it seemed unusual, and it’s all I’ve got to go on at the moment.”

Rayla stood up and helped Callum to his feet.

“Come on. Lets get this over with.”

***

Callum and Rayla arrived back in the main chamber across from the Dragon Queen’s lair, and went over to join Soren, Gren and Amaya, who sitting on a set of stairs that led up to the low dais in the corner of the room. Callum explained what he had seen. 

“Soren, do you know anything about this? Did you ever see Viren do anything similar?”

Soren looked slightly uncomfortable. 

“Dad never let me near any of his … business. That was always his and Claudia’s thing. Once it was obvious that i didn't have any talent for magic he kind of just ignored me. I have no idea how any of it works, either. But it does sound like something he’d do.”

“You’ve got that right.” Rayla muttered.

As Soren spoke, Amaya had leaned over and was elbowing Gren in the side.

“I think I know it” said Gren, hesitantly. “After General Amaya went to defend the border Viren took me prisoner. He kept me in some sort of secret workshop, and he also had the Moonshadow assassin who killed King Harrow chained up in the room next to me, I didn’t know his name but-”

“Runaan.” said Rayla. “His name was Runaan.”

“Well, he tried to get Runaan to talk, but he wouldn’t. He was threatening to starve himself to death. And then Viren gave him one more chance, he wanted information about some relic he found in the Dragon King’s lair, but Runaan refused. Viren threatened to kill him then, but Runaan said he was already dead.”

Rayla nodded. “Moonshadow elves are trained to accept the reality of their own death while they’re still alive. It means that even when they’re faced with the threat of death, a true Moonshadow warrior will remain loyal to our people, because for them there is no fear in dying.”

“I think thats what Runaan meant.” said Gren. “But Viren said he knew a fate worse than death. He had this bag, I don’t know what was in it but it must’ve been pretty awful because I think he showed it to Runaan, and he actually sounded scared for the first time in ages. And then he used dark magic. It sounded… painful.” 

Gren looked away from Rayla and stared intently at a spot on the ground. Beside him, Soren wore an expression that would freeze fire. 

“When it was done Runaan was gone, and Viren came out with this coin. It looked like Runaan’s face was in the metal, like he was somehow bound to the coin or something.” 

“That’s what I must’ve seen in the memory!” Callum exclaimed. “Rayla’s parents weren’t killed, they were imprisoned.”

Rayla had gone very quiet.

“No.” She said darkly. “Not imprisoned. Torn apart. When we die we join our ancestors in the Forests of Night, to live forever in the light of the moon. He did not even let them have that. They will be trapped in there forever, and I will never see them again.” 

“Rayla I-” Callum started.

“Leave me alone, Callum.”

Rayla ran from the room. Callum started to follow but was stopped by his aunt’s firm grip on his arm.

“Let her go” Amaya signed. 

“But surely it’s not as bad as she thinks, right?” objected Callum. “I mean, her parents are only trapped, after all. We must be able to find a way to release them.”

“But we don’t even know where the coins are.” said Soren. “Knowing my dad he probably hid them away in some secret part of the castle that only he can find.”

“I don’t think so.” said Gren. “I’m not certain where they are exactly, but I know he left them somewhere in his workshop before he started the journey to Xadia. He was talking to himself, or that bug thing maybe, but something convinced him to leave them in Katolis. He wasn’t happy about it, either, but I think he listened to it in the end and left them behind.”

“I wonder why.” mused Callum. “Well I guess it doesn’t matter now. Rayla and I will go back to Katolis as soon as possible to look for them. There’s only so many places he could’ve hidden them in that workshop.”

***  
  


Callum gave Rayla about half an hour alone before he set out to find her. He bumped into her as he descended the steps of the Storm Spire, leaning up against the stone arch inscribed with the words: ‘Prepare to Draw Your Last Breath’. She turned away as he approached and let her hair fall over her face.

“What do you want, Callum?”

He sat down next to her and put an arm around her waist.

“I talked to Gren again. He thinks that Viren left the coins behind in Katolis when he left for Xadia, and that they’re hidden somewhere in his secret workshop. We can go back and find them tomorrow. And since they’re just trapped, well we just have to find a way to release them, right?”

Rayla made a noise that was somewhere between a hiccup and a sob.

“Yeah? And how do you plan on doing that?”

“Honestly? I don’t know. Maybe by then we will have captured Claudia, and we can make her release them. Or we could find one of the other kingdoms’ dark mages and see if they could do it. Or one of the elf mages will know how to reverse it. Heck, maybe just breaking the coins might work!   
“I might not know how to undo this curse but i do know one thing. I’ve lost my family too, and I know that i would do anything in my power to bring them back. But they're dead, and I can’t fix that. But for your family there’s still hope. I love you, Rayla. let me help you.”

“Callum I-"

Rayla’s words were cut off as Callum pulled her into a tight embrace. Her skin was as cool as the night air, and her breaths came in uneven sniffs. He held her close, and after a while he felt her relax into him and as her breathing steadied. They drew apart, and Rayla rested her head on Callums’s shoulder as they gazed out over the starlit world. 

“I’m sorry, for running away back there.” she said. “I’d just got so used to the idea that my parents were dead, and then to find out that they were alive and suffering this whole time and I could’ve done something about it."

“There was nothing you could’ve done, Rayla. We can’t blame anyone except Viren, and he’s dead. All we can do now is undo all the bad things he's done, starting with releasing your parents and Runaan. But we have to find them first. We’ll set off for Katolis tomorrow. Ezran said two of the dragons agreed to carry us, so it shouldn’t take more than a day to get there."

They started to walk back up the staircase. As they climbed Rayla stopped abruptly and peered over the edge.

“Did you see that?” she said in a low whisper.

“No? what was it”

“I think I saw something move down there.” Rayla pointed towards a spot on the ground at the base of the Storm Spire. 

“But thats where Viren fell. Why would anyone want to-"

A tiny spark of violet light ignited in the darkness.

“Claudia!” 

Rayla was already sprinting back down the steps. Callum ran after her as fast as he could in the dark, feet slipping on the rugged stone.By the time he reached the ground, Claudia was gone and Rayla was pacing back and forth on the dry grass.

“They’re gone!” said Rayla, frustration edging into her voice.

Callum frowned. “What do you mean, ‘They?’”

“Both of them! Look, she took his body. I can’t believe I missed her!”

She was right. The spot where Viren’s body had lain was deserted, save for a small pool of dried blood that looked almost black in the half-light. 

“But why would she risk her life to come back for it?” wondered Callum.

Rayla sighed. “I don’t know, and I don’t like it. I’m going to go after her.”

“Rayla, stop, its late. There’s no point in looking for them tonight, Ibis was out all afternoon and couldn't find her. Lets get some rest now, and General Amaya can send some trackers out in the morning. Besides, she can’t move far dragging that thing around with her."  
_And she's too dangerous, you can’t take her on by yourself at the moment._

Rayla looked about two seconds away from running off into the night. But then she turned, grabbed Callum by the hand and began marching back up the stairs.

“Ugh, I hate it when you’re right. Come on, let’s get to bed.”  


  
  
***  


In the morning, the sun rose again and dawn broke bright and clear. Two dragons flew into the West, chased by the golden rays of a brave new day. 


End file.
